It was March. Only four days in Cayo Largo, but excellent. My husband and me stayed for the first time in the island, it was in 2002, three years ago, but we remember perfectly and we recomend absolutely everything. Big rooms, comfortable, sunny and funny becouse of their lighty colours, pleasent people working in rooms, restaurants bars and entertainment. Great sea views, the beach at one step... The cocktel of "piña colada" and "mojitos" are unforgetable on the beach. We reccomend to every one who wants to rest peacefully under the sun, but, but, but have some sun lotion to protect, because in a couple of hours you will be... RED and hurt.
From Spain, Ingrid C. & Juanjo B.

Arrival: Jan 30th - Feb 6th
A group of nine of us departed Pearson via Skyservice Friday Jan 30th. Flight was delayed as they had some systems issue come up after we pushed back from the gate. Back to the gate we went holding our collective breath hoping that we would actually leave that night. The captain came on the intercom explaining the situation and that we would be departing shortly. We did.

Now, I am not a complainer by nature and, hey, I am going on vacation, but the legroom on Skyservice is atrocious. I am not a big guy by any stretch but for the first time ever I felt truly uncomfortable on a plane, and I travel alot for work--in hospitality too! How I wish that WestJet was still servicing this route.

That said, we arrived after a very interesting landing--pouring rain, low clouds and windy--and were kept on the plane until the downpour abated. After about 10-15 minutes we finally were granted our freedom and were quickly through customs, grabbed our bags and off to the Sol Club we headed. Check-in was quick and efficient.

Rooms:
We had room 1024 for our stay. Close to the pool bar and steps from the eastern boardwalk to the beach. This is the first trip in five that we did not have an oceanview room. Never missed it and would put the extra cash in my pocket if I could have 1024 every stay going forward. You get a semi ocean view (if you are on the upper floor) and the block of units is in a quiet area. Very sweet! Rooms were bright and clean. The beds could use a makeover though. Interestingly, they were delivering new TV's while we were there for what looked like a Bell Satellite system. Personally, I wish they just spent the money on new beds.

Restaurants and Bars:
The Sol has one main buffet for breakfast and dinner. There is a beach restaurant (the Ranchon) that is open for lunch and also doubles as an a la carte in the evenings. There is also a more upscale international a la carte called Las Trinas open for dinner only. Reservations are required for the a la carte dinner options so make sure to get your plans in place soon after your arrival. There is a pool bar/restaurant open from lunch through late afternoon as well as a lobby bar openseemingly from dawn until the last one leaves at night. We ate--and drank--at all of them during our stay.

Now, all of us Cuba-philes know that the food can be somewhat bland at times. The food this year was without question the best I have ever had in Cuba. The buffet food in particular was very good and the choices were varied. The service we received at all outlets was exceptional and everyone commented on how things seemed to have been improved since our last visit in 2007.

Arrival: Jan 30th - Feb 6th
A group of nine of us departed Pearson via Skyservice Friday Jan 30th. Flight was delayed as they had some systems issue come up after we pushed back from the gate. Back to the gate we went holding our collective breath hoping that we would actually leave that night. The captain came on the intercom explaining the situation and that we would be departing shortly. We did.

Now, I am not a complainer by nature and, hey, I am going on vacation, but the legroom on Skyservice is atrocious. I am not a big guy by any stretch but for the first time ever I felt truly uncomfortable on a plane, and I travel alot for work--in hospitality too! How I wish that WestJet was still servicing this route.

That said, we arrived after a very interesting landing--pouring rain, low clouds and windy--and were kept on the plane until the downpour abated. After about 10-15 minutes we finally were granted our freedom and were quickly through customs, grabbed our bags and off to the Sol Club we headed. Check-in was quick and efficient.

Rooms:
We had room 1024 for our stay. Close to the pool bar and steps from the eastern boardwalk to the beach. This is the first trip in five that we did not have an oceanview room. Never missed it and would put the extra cash in my pocket if I could have 1024 every stay going forward. You get a semi ocean view (if you are on the upper floor) and the block of units is in a quiet area. Very sweet! Rooms were bright and clean. The beds could use a makeover though. Interestingly, they were delivering new TV's while we were there for what looked like a Bell Satellite system. Personally, I wish they just spent the money on new beds.

Restaurants and Bars:
The Sol has one main buffet for breakfast and dinner. There is a beach restaurant (the Ranchon) that is open for lunch and also doubles as an a la carte in the evenings. There is also a more upscale international a la carte called Las Trinas open for dinner only. Reservations are required for the a la carte dinner options so make sure to get your plans in place soon after your arrival. There is a pool bar/restaurant open from lunch through late afternoon as well as a lobby bar openseemingly from dawn until the last one leaves at night. We ate--and drank--at all of them during our stay.

Now, all of us Cuba-philes know that the food can be somewhat bland at times. The food this year was without question the best I have ever had in Cuba. The buffet food in particular was very good and the choices were varied. The service we received at all outlets was exceptional and everyone commented on how things seemed to have been improved since our last visit in 2007.

Arrival: March 20 - 27
We recently had another great week at Sol Cayo Largo. This was a return visit and we were not disappointed. We flew Skyservice from Toronto and had the best flight experience with them than ever before. We took medical supplies from Not Just Tourists and had been sent a waiver form Skyservice for 15kg to cover the two bags. Check in was smooth and efficient. On arrival at the airport, Cuban officials asked for one of the med bags to be opened. We complied, showed the paperwork and all was well. We took a "taxi bus" to the hotel, 2 pesos each, and arrived before the busload of other guests. Although we did not get the room we had requested months ago, we were settled into another oceanview room within 30 minutes. (More on this at the end).

Resort comments
All workers were helpful and friendly. They were appreciative of the gifts we handed out. The room was very comfortable, with clean towels supplied daily. Oceanview rooms have coffee makers and we took a glass of milk from the dining room at breakfast and kept it in the mini fridge. The food was plentiful and varied, and we had no complaints. At home, we eat carefully prepared, healthy food and take great pleasure in eating well - we have never been hungry on Cayo Largo. We did not eat at the a la carte restaurant as we were happy with buffet choices. Drinks were good, with lots of options. We used small Bubba mugs so were able to cut down a bit on waste. The beach to the bottom of the boardwalk was often almost washed away at times, but there was still enough for one chair. To the west, the beach widened and people were able to group chairs, rather than placing side by each. Umbrellas were handed out with the first beach towel and were ours until check out. There were lots of chairs all week long.

We took the NJT bags to the physician on site and he accepted them on behalf of the clinic and filled in the required paperwork. We would do this again and urge others to consider being not just tourists.

Back to the room change. When we spoke to the "front desk" people and explained that we had requested a specific room, and we did pursue this politely and respectfully, we were told that we could next day be moved to a room beside the one we had wanted. This was fine, since the first one had a very obstructed ocean view. I am really not sure if the MAS number helped. It did allow us a later check out as apparently it guarantees one based on availability. To sum up, a week at Sol was relaxing and we look forward to our next visit. I hope this review is helpful and addresses some questions that readers may have.

Arrival: April 16 - 23
Leaving Montreal, the Air Transat flight was great. Well, as great as it can be. We know we are going to be in paradise in a few short hours so we can put up with a non-eventful flight down. Arrrival at the airport was pretty quick and efficient. It's a small airport and we were a full plane. There were quite a few Customs booths open and going through Customs was "painless". Through the door (once past the Customs agent in the booth) we went through the "scanner". Easy. There is no money exchange booth here - it's on the other side where the departures are so we decided to wait til we got to the resort. Our luggage was waiting for us once through Customs, easy to find, and we walked through the door to find our Rep. Kim pointed us in the direction of our bus. We got on and waited for everyone else to get on. There were plenty of seats but last few "stragglers" on the bus didn't / couldn't sit down. The bus driver was getting a little impatient waiting for these tourists to get on - those that needed one more cigarette after their flight - so, as soon as they got on he closed the door and took off. The stragglers had to hang on for dear life. Although there were plenty of seats, some folks thought they would use the seats for their "carry on" luggage, therefore taking a seat away from a passenger.

Arrival: April 16 - 23
Leaving Montreal, the Air Transat flight was great. Well, as great as it can be. We know we are going to be in paradise in a few short hours so we can put up with a non-eventful flight down. Arrrival at the airport was pretty quick and efficient. It's a small airport and we were a full plane. There were quite a few Customs booths open and going through Customs was "painless". Through the door (once past the Customs agent in the booth) we went through the "scanner". Easy. There is no money exchange booth here - it's on the other side where the departures are so we decided to wait til we got to the resort. Our luggage was waiting for us once through Customs, easy to find, and we walked through the door to find our Rep. Kim pointed us in the direction of our bus. We got on and waited for everyone else to get on. There were plenty of seats but last few "stragglers" on the bus didn't / couldn't sit down. The bus driver was getting a little impatient waiting for these tourists to get on - those that needed one more cigarette after their flight - so, as soon as they got on he closed the door and took off. The stragglers had to hang on for dear life. Although there were plenty of seats, some folks thought they would use the seats for their "carry on" luggage, therefore taking a seat away from a passenger.

Arrival: April 16 to 23
Very speedy arrival , a welcome drink at the hotel, and music in the breeze, we felt we were home in paradise. The rooms were not ready so it was off to the beach. It was our first time here, but we stayed at the Barcelo last time and wanted to try a different hotel.

Rooms:
The rooms were nice but they all are anytime you go to the tropics. The bed was a little on the hard and bumpy side but I do believe that I can sleep on a rock if I desired.

Restaurants and Bars:
Bars were stocked and service was good as can be expected with a fair amont of the hotel in use. I do not die of dehydration or hunger. The food is decent and there were a few not-so-great meals and a bunch of good ones. We only went to the one al a carte on the beachfront and it was a little less than great but there is always the buffet so it was all good !

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
The beach was in great shape and the waves began on day two. Two sections of beach actually washed out on one day but were returned the next day. This was an amazing sight. They have a huge pool and I went in it once for a dip just to say that I did. I am not a pool person at all so I found it to have a strange odour and I guess that is because of the chemicals that they must put in.

Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
No tours this time but they main activity we do is beach walk and there were only a couple of spots that it was a little rocky. We are active people so this was not problem.

Other Comments:
All in all, a good resort. I would not want to bring children here because there is nothing for them to do. I would also not bring older kids here because of the nudity that they WILL encounter. Cayo Largo is for lovers, and this is a live and let live atmosphere they cater to all kinds of couples. If you are not accepting or approving of this then please go somewhere else. The food is not great, it is good enough for us, and this is Cuba so it is the beach that is our main goal. If you are lucky sometimes you can meet the nicest people,..wearing a smile !

Cayo largo is well kept secret. Frequent flyer to the caribbean islands for diving, I went 3 times to this place as it is perfect for quiet people running away from the crowd. Diving experience: Some sites are great for beginners, others are more advanced... Perhaps not the best but somehow unique and very worth the affordable price. In April-May excellent water visibility, but January was also good. The Sol Club is the top of the line in Cayo Largo because of the beautiful surroundings and beach (Restaurant & bar on the beach!). First trip was in Villa Capricho (lovely single huts)but it has been wiped out by a hurricane.
Long life to this paradise and make sure you plant a tree, ask the locals.

We vacationed at the Sol Cayo Largo (SCL) from October 17-24, 2010. This was our 6th trip to Cuba, 1st to SCL and we are a married couple in our 40’s. Here is my review and findings of what my wife and I consider our new favourite resort.

Arrival:
We were through customs in a very short time. I would have to say that Travel operators could have had better organization of telling us which bus to get on as I had to search for the Hola Sun Rep. The bus trip was a short 10 minutes at the most. We arrived at the resort at around 10pm and we were able to go straight to the buffet where there was quite the spread of food. After a good bite to eat, we went to the desk and were quickly given our room cards. I noticed that the front desk had everyone’s room info waiting behind the desk. Very well organized! I noticed this practice was repeated every day guests were arriving through the week. We were quickly driven to our room and shown the unit’s amenities.

Rooms:
I had read a review which recommended room# 1024. This is in building 10 on the second floor and is located at the east side of the resort. I had emailed a week before leaving, asking if it was possible to reserve it. While we did not get 1024 we were given 1023 next door which also has a decent view of the ocean. It was bright and clean, with a standard size bathroom which had a wall-hung hair dryer. The room contained a king size bed which had a fairly comfortable mattress, better than some I’ve slept on in Cuba. We also had a bar fridge with 1 bottle of water replenished daily. There were extra pillows and blankets in the closet. The closet also housed the safe which was operated by 1 of the 2 room cards. We did not have to pay extra for the safe. On the balcony facing the ocean was a table and 2 chairs. There were never any bugs in our room. The shower, sink, air conditioner and toilet worked well. There was always enough hot water except for one late evening. All the electrical outlets were 220 volt that would fit North American and European prongs. If there is one negative about the room, we wished there was better lighting in the room and bathroom. Unlike other resorts, we did not find much on the TV to much.

Restaurants and Bars:
The SCL consists of 2 a la carte Restaurants; Las Trinas, and the Ranchon. The Lobby bar is located just past the lobby. The pool bar where you can get delicious sandwiches and pizza on the opposite side and the beach bar. The buffet for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
My wife and I enjoyed every meal at the SCL. I found the food at the buffet better than some other resorts. I always had enough to eat, found the food quite tasty, and never went hungry. Most of the restaurants serve a collection of chicken, pork, and beef.
The Las Trinas, among other dishes, serves a delicious smoked salmon appetizer, lobster bisque, and filet mignon. The pork chop dish is quite tasty as well. They also serve a nice selection of desserts. The Ranchon was also quite good.
You can also order a lobster for an extra 20 pesos.
The buffet for breakfast, lunch and dinner, is your typical Cuban buffet. Dishes of pork, beef, chicken, shrimp, rice, fish, mussels, as well as cold cuts, assortment of salads, beans, bacon and eggs (breakfast), and breads and buns. There is also a tasty pastry bar and ice cream bar. For all meals you can have different items fried for you on a griddle, i.e. omelettes, beef, chicken, and pork. They even have a pasta bar and a pancake/crepe bar.

Beach/Pools/Grounds:
The grounds are beautiful with many palms and flowering bushes. I was actually surprised by how lush the grounds were, given that this area contains a lot of scrub. Walkways wind around the resort connecting all the buildings and amenities. A large fish pond stretches around the front of the buffet, lobby and over to Las Trinas and Karaoke buildings. I would say that for the most part it is very guest friendly, even for anyone with a wheelchair, with the exception of the stairs down to the beach.

POOL
Actually, I should say pools. The 2 salt water free form pools are beautiful, large and very guest friendly. One has a small island of palm trees and flowering bushes and at the end has the swim up bar. I should add, if you leave your belongings by the pool in the evening and don’t come back until after the pool caretakers have straightened up, you may find them gone. If this does happen, ask the pool caretakers as they have probably picked them up and put them in a lost and found.

AGENCY:
This year our trip was with Hola Sun, and flight through Canjet. We booked our trip through Cassandra at Bravo Travel, in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Cassandra was great to deal with and very helpful and was able to match $ to $ the price I found on line. I highly recommend her as a travel agent.

FLIGHT:
As I mentioned it was through Canjet and the aircraft was the Boeing 737 and while it is a smaller aircraft, we found it to have better leg room than the Airbus A320 we flew last year. I would have to say that the flight crew was very accommodating and professional. I do wish that they would have served water/drinks faster after serving the light snack. This year we had a short stopover in Santiago de Cuba. After about 25 mins, we were up in the air and on to Cayo Largo. It was quite interesting to land in Cayo Largo as it is a relatively short runway and it seemed that the thrusters came on as soon as the back wheels touched and didn’t stop until the end of the runway. The flight back started out interesting. We were delayed in Cuba for close to 4 hrs. After the wait, the Captain got us to cruising altitude quickly and got us home in just over 3 hours.

WEATHER:
The weather this year was next to perfect. I was worried before we left as we were due to fly out at the same time Hurricane Paula was around the middle of Cuba even though it had dissipated to a tropical depression. I emailed the SCL and they emailed me back very quickly to assure me that Cayo Largo was not hampered at all by Paula. We had mostly sunny days and a couple times that rained over night. Three days started out overcast but it cleared up by 11am or so. The temperatures were mid to high 30’s throughout the week. For most of the week it was windy and the water was wavy, especially the last couple of days.

THE STAFF:
I CAN NOT say enough about the staff at this resort, so friendly and accommodating.
A special shout out to: Tani and Yudisley in the buffet, “Pool Boy” and man of many talents; Yoansy, and Gardener Firenzio, Danieyis, Ivo and Sommelier Jorge in Las Trinas, Noel “the dancing fool” Lobby Bar Bartender, Mario and Antonio in the Lobby Bar and Cobas at the Beach Bar. One cannot forget Carlos at the beach with his dog “Lola”. These people certainly made our stay even more memorable.

For those of you taking gifts, please note that what many can use are kids shoes and adult shoes, soap, shower gel and shampoo. Baseball mitts, balls and bats are great too. We took down a whole suitcase full of stuff and even gave away the suitcase. The person we gave it to was so happy for it. If you do happen to have a spare suitcase, someone there may need one. Keep in mind that the staff typically work 20 days straight and 10 days at home. They stay in the village for those 20 days. I was blown away by several of staff who gave us a gift back in appreciation for what we gave them.

THE VILLAGE:
The village where the resort workers live is a short distance away. We rented a scooter one overcast morning and rode into the village. You’ll find a; restaurant, bar, Caracol gift shop, LCDH (La Casa del Habano) cigar shop, museum, dive shop, and a bank. The LCDH also has a selection of liquor and coffee. Please do take in the little Turtle Sanctuary. They ask for a 1 peso donation. If you are lucky enough, you may be able to take part in the releasing of baby turtles from the resort beach, which we quite enjoyed.

CIGARS:
The airport has a very small selection. For any serious cigar smoker I highly recommend buying your cigars at the LCDH in the village. It has a much better selection. Please see my pictures of this shop. One thing I do recommend; if you are buying a few boxes, request the official receipt. You should be given duplicate copies, one for you, one for the Cuban Government. Every year I go to Cuba I bring back a few boxes. I always request this receipt regardless what the regulations say. This time it indeed came in handy as my boxes came into question and they asked for the receipt.

BEACH AND OCEAN:
The beach is beautiful! I love the fact that the Pelicano next door is still a distance away. The ocean depth drops off relatively quickly but still extends far enough to enjoy it even in wavy conditions. There are quite a few palapas set back from the ocean near the rocky edge. There are also quite a few A-frame shelters which are set up onto the ledge of the rocks. As many before me have stated, west of the beach bar is designated as the nude area. This is not so much of a separated area as it is an imaginary division of the beach area. Everyone respects this line and does not venture in front of the resort without clothing. Also, when walking west along the beach, even far past the resort you will encounter someone walking wearing nothing but a smile. I personally love to walk the beach and this area is amazing for walking. I walked close to 10km on a few days. We also did visit Paraiso (Para-eetzo) beach and Sirena beach. I personally think Sirena is the better of the 2. There is a small bar hut located at Paraiso where, for a couple of pesos you can buy a drink, ie; beer or even a mojito. Sirena has a few people who will walk the beach area asking if you want a drink and will deliver it to you. Do note that drinks are about a peso or 2 more at Sirena.

LOBBY and STORE:
The Lobby is not overly large but is open and airy, with a central fountain. Not a lot to mention about the store; typical Cuban souvenirs as well as some clothing and a small selection of cigars and alcohol.

ENTERTAINMENT:
I would have to say that their evening entertainment is well performed by very talented people. I would highly recommend taking in any of them.

DEPARTURE:
The Cayo Largo airport is not large, nor up to date. While standing in line at the ticket counters, we found it quite warm. I’m not sure if they had AC and it wasn’t working or if this section just didn’t have AC. Once through customs, you’ll find a waiting area with uncomfortable chairs. This section does have AC but we still found it quite warm. You’ll also find bathrooms, a small Caracol gift shop and a bar sectioned off from the waiting area, which seemed to have better AC and more comfortable chairs. The bar had a sectioned off room for smokers. Be forewarned, when people enter and exit the smoking room, smoke enters the bar area and can be quite over powering. The gift shop had a very small assortment of standard gifts and cigars. The bathroom; when you enter, you “donate” 1 peso for several sheets of toilet paper to a lady at the entrance and there were not any toilet seats.

To finish, we thoroughly enjoyed our 1st vacation to this beautiful resort. I would highly recommend it and personally look forward to many more vacations to this amazing cayo.

Sol Cayo Largo from April 9-16. The airport waiting time was the slowest I'd ever encountered in Cuba. We waited in line for one hour.

At check-in, we were told to go to another desk which for repeat customers and it was our 3rd visit to this hotel. We checked in quickly and were greeted by Abdel with a refreshing drink.

We had fantastic weather all week and the beach remained the same all week. There were about a dozen palapas on the Eastern side of the beach between the Sol and the Sol Pelicano and a good 20+ at the clothing optional/Western part of the beach. There never seemed to be a problem getting loungers/shade as there seemed to be a flight leaving early afternoon every day so the loungers would free up by noon for the next batch of guests. I believe the hotel was at full capacity all week.

I booked the a-la-carte restaurants on Monday. This is done with Jorge at the gazebo to the left of the Tour Bureau near the lobby. He told me to expect a special invitation for repeat guests on Tuesday night. We received the invitation and duly accepted. They had transformed the pool restaurant and it was beautiful. They served us champagne and a wonderful 3-course meal of soup, paella and lobster tail and filet mignon. A very nice touch indeed!

We ate at the Las Trinas restaurant on Wednesday. It was very good, but pace yourself as they serve a lot of food. We also had dinner at the Ranchon (beach restaurant) on Thursday night. This used to be a-la-carte, but is now buffet and you can order grilled meat/fish. It was very similar to the lunches served here every day. In future, I would skip this and just go to the regular buffet as it was much better in my opinion.

We ate at the pool restaurant for lunch almost every day as it was our favorite. The pizza margarita is amazing as is the pasta. They've added a lot of items to the menu since the last visit.

The resort itself is beautiful and very clean and the gardens are gorgeous. The waterways were drained the whole time, but I'm sure it was for maintenance purposes. The rooms could use a bit of a facelift, especially the bathrooms, but they are very clean and we never ran out of toilet paper, drinking water or hot water. Air conditioning and the mini fridge worked perfectly all week.

The people who work here are the reason we keep coming back. It's nice to see the same staff from 5 and 7 years ago. Hats off to Judy at the buffet; Abdel, Julio and Raybert at the lobby bar; Ivo and Saskia at the pool restaurant and Alexander at the beach bar. They were all fabulous!

One last note to MaS card holders. They do not recognize the MaS card anymore at this hotel. I tried to use it for late checkout on the day we left and the front desk clerk told me that they no longer accept it. I paid 30 CUC's to keep the room until 4:00 (they were busing us out at 5:3